The present invention relates generally to the field of document handling systems and, more particularly, to a paper currency feeding method and apparatus for use with a paper currency handling system.
A variety of techniques and apparatuses have been used to satisfy the requirements of automated currency handling systems. As businesses and banks grow, these businesses are experiencing a greater volume of paper currency. Consequently, these businesses are continually requiring that their currency be processed in a more timely and efficient manner.
One drawback of currency handling machines that process stacks of currency bills is the unreliability associated with striping individual bills from a stack of bills and feeding the stripped bills into the currency processing machine. Specifically, often multiple bills are stripped and feed into the machine at the same time. This situation often translates into the reprocessing of an entire stack of bills so that an accurate count of the bills can be made. Reprocessing stacks of bills adds to the overall time required to process a batch of currency. Accordingly, there is a need for a feeding mechanism which can more reliably strip bills from a stack of bills and advance the stripped bills into a currency handling machine.
A document feeding apparatus for use with a document processing device. The document feeding apparatus comprises an input receptacle adapted to receive a stack of documents and at least one feeding wheel adapted to strip documents, one at a time, from the stack of documents. The feeding wheel includes a moveable insert having a high friction surface adapted to engage and to advance each of the documents.
The above summary of the present invention is not intended to represent each embodiment, or every aspect, of the present invention. Additional features and benefits of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description, figures, and claims set forth below.